When Dave Melo landed his job as project manager at Elite Construction, he stopped worrying so much about money and moved out of his parents’ house.

Living wage for a family of four

Melo, who makes $40,000 a year plus expenses, has been approached by other companies. But they pay less or they pay only commission. Many don’t pay for expenses, either, like driving between work sites.

“To have this kind of protection – knowing where your paycheque is coming from and that it’s going to be steady – you can’t beat it,” he said.

And the security and respect that engenders “goes a long way,” he says. “You’re able to put more into the company and you want to.”

on Tuesday. In what might seem like an odd alliance, the chamber and the anti-poverty group teamed up to launch a campaign to encourage employers to pay a living wage. That includes public and private sector employers and companies they have contracts with.

In Windsor, it’s $13.10 an hour with health and dental benefits or $14.15 an hour without benefits. That’s $3.15 an hour more than Ontario’s minimum wage.

That’s based on a calculation by the Canadian Centre for Policy Alternatives and other experts. It’s designed for a family of four with two parents who work full time and two children, one in full time daycare and another in daycare before and after school. It’s not luxury. It covers food (no alcohol or cigarettes), clothing, shelter (rented, not owned), transportation and child care.

It doesn’t cover caring for a disabled, severely ill or elderly family member, interest payments on credit cards or loans or saving for retirement, your children’s education or emergencies. But it does include money for one parent to take classes in the evening to improve job skills. And it includes a minimal amount for recreation and a vacation, say a membership at the YMCA, a trip to Adventure Bay once a month or a week camping.

It reflects what it really costs to live above the poverty line in Windsor. And it includes not only the necessities of life, but enough to free families from the chronic stress of financial insecurity and enable them to participate in the life of the community.

“The principle is simple,” says Adam Vasey, director of Pathway to Potential. “If someone is working full time, it makes sense that they’re not living in poverty, not only that, but they’re able to participate in all aspects of the community.”

Proponents call it a “higher standard” than the legislated minimum wage.

Pathway to Potential floated the idea among small businesses here five years ago. This isn’t the right time, he was told.

Now, he says, “We’ve come a long way.”

Windsor is the 10th city in Ontario to launch the campaign in a movement that is gaining traction around the world. It’s happening amid growing concern about the rapid rise of part-time and low-wage work and increasing income inequality. The quality of jobs in Canada has been falling for 25 years and is now at a record low, the Canadian Imperial Bank of Commerce reported last week. Canada has one of the highest proportions of low-wage workers – 25 per cent – among similar, industrialized countries, according to Statistics Canada.

Windsor lost 12,000 manufacturing jobs, many high-paying, between 2001 and 2013. More than 18 per cent of people here live in poverty, more than anywhere else in Canada. Thirty-three percent live on low incomes, also more than anywhere else in Canada.

It’s a myth, says Catherine Ludgate of Vancity Credit Union in Vancouver, the largest credit union in Canada and one of the largest companies to commit to paying a living wage, that most poor people don’t work.

“The fact is,” she told the campaign here, “the majority of the poor in Canada are working people.”

In Windsor, 8.6 per cent of working people live below the poverty line, compared to 6.7 per cent in the rest of Ontario.

This time, Vasey is talking about the benefits – for everyone – of a living wage. And there are many for employers, studies show: a skilled, productive and happy workforce, less overtime, absenteeism, discipline problems and turnover, lower recruitment and training costs, more customer satisfaction and a better reputation in a time when more people are concerned about corporate ethics. Costco, known for treating its employees well, has a much lower turnover rate than Walmart.

“These are tried and true benefits,” said Ludgate. At Vancity, which raised pay for call centre employees and contract jobs like catering, “it has been the single biggest lift in employee morale in recent memory. This was truly meaningful, and all the staff knew it. ”

Paying a living wage contributes to economic development, say the chamber and Pathway to Potential, because it increases consumer spending. Much of that increase goes into the local economy, like Melo renting his own apartment. A report by Goldman Sachs in 2009 concluded that increasing the income of people with low wages stimulates the economy more than increasing the income of those who already earn a lot. Forget trickle-down economics.

And there’s this: “When we’re trying to attract a knowledgeable and talented workforce,” said Vasey, “we want to prove we pay at least a living wage.”

There are even benefits for society, proponents argue, in improved health and civic engagement.

The living wage is also notable because it’s different in each city because the cost of living is different in each city. It’s meant to be calculated annually to remain relevant. And the calculation takes into account government deductions like income tax and supplements like the universal child care benefit. In doing that, it recognizes that both government and employers share responsibility for the well-being of citizens.

The other four local businesses recognized Tuesday are: ABC Day Nursery, Motor City Community Credit Union, Spotvin Inc. and Suede Productions.

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